Polarimetry

RADARSAT-2 offers single, dual and quad polarization. Polarization refers to the orientation of the radar wave from the SAR antenna. RADARSAT-2 can transmit in either the horizontal (H) or vertical (V) polarization and the sensor can receive the returning wave in either H or V polarization, and in some cases, both simultaneously. RADARSAT-2 is the leading operational SAR mission offering quad-pol data.

The ​first example is a RADARSAT-2 VV polarized image showing oil slicks and ship wakes while the second example, of the same location, is a RADARSAT-2 VH polarized image showing multiple ships. The ships appear as bright returns and are more readily detected than in the VV image.